View from HQ - 2012/07

Activity is
ramping up at
the International
Aeromodeling
Center. By the
time this issue
of MA reaches
you, we will be
a week or two
away from the
beginning of the outdoor portion
of the 86th National Aeromodeling
Championships (Nats).
The competitions officially
begin on Monday, July 9, with
RC Scale Aerobatics and run
through Wednesday, August 15,
concluding with RC Helicopter. In
between those two events will be
competitions in all the other RC,
CL, and FF disciplines. A Nats event
calendar can be found on the AMA
website.
If you’re a participant in this year’s
Nats, we look forward to welcoming
you to Muncie, Indiana. For families,
there are a number of attractions in
the Muncie area to visit during your
stay here. The Ball State Planetarium
and Observatory is part of the Ball
State University campus and features
great programming during the
summer on topics such as planets,
galaxies, and constellations.
The Muncie Children’s Museum
in downtown Muncie is a
24,000-square-foot facility housing
nearly 20 interactive exhibits for kids
of all ages.
The Minnetrista facility spans
more than 40 acres of landscaped
gardens and grounds. Minnetrista’s
continuously changing exhibits focus
on nature, gardens, local history,
and art. There are numerous other
attractions available as well.
If you’d like to know more about
what Muncie has to offer during your
visit, brochures from the Muncie
Visitors Bureau and the Muncie-
Delaware Chamber of Commerce
will be available in the lobby of the
AMA Administration Building.
While you’re on-site, plan to spend
some time in the National Model
Aviation Museum. The museum,
the largest of its kind in the world
with more than 9,000 model aviation
artifacts, will be open extended
hours during the Nats, and if you
get a chance, please stop in the
Administration Building and say
hello. A member of the AMA staff
would be happy to give you a tour
of the facility and introduce you
to some of the people on our team
who work so hard to support our
membership.
If you can’t make it to Muncie
this year for any of the Nats
events, you can stay abreast of
the competition by subscribing to
NatsNews. Published electronically
daily, NatsNews features items of
interest, scores, and happenings that
take place during the events. You
can subscribe by visiting the AMA
website at www.modelaircraft.org/
subscribe.aspx.
I thought I’d share some interesting
news from the trade show world,
especially for our members in
Cleveland, Ohio, and surrounding
areas. The Hobby Manufacturers
Association is moving its 28th annual
iHobby Expo to the I-X Center in
Cleveland, Ohio, this year. The show
is open to the general public on
October 13-14.